Home again, home again..........

Arrived in Juneau 5:30 this morning. Slowly settling in at home after dinner with a friend. The ferry ride from Bellingham was restful. Met a couple from Florida on their way to Denali to work there for the summer.

I got to see Avatar! It was shown on the ferry during one of our open-water crossings. There was more ocean-motion than usual so reclining and watching a movie was a good thing to do at that time. And.............I had been wanting to see it. Made me want to bond with a "dragon" and go for a ride.

The snow is gone beside the highway and at my house. The ground is covered in dry leaves and broken branches are strewn about. A gentle raking will make it pretty and parklike again. I still see snow on the mountain tops and don't know if the sea level trails are clear back in the woods. My rhubarb is growing and has bright red stems about a foot tall. Should be ready to pick soon. Devil's Club has new shoots. Trees are beginning to show new leaves. I saw two deer today, a weasel humpity-humping across the road and an eagle perched 30 feet away at my neighbors.

Tomorrow, I go shopping to restock the fridge. My calendar is beginning to fill. Thursday, will meet with Ravenstail weavers and catch up on winter happenings. Saturday, will go on a tour sponsored by Audubon that will take us north into Berner's Bay. Hopefully, the herring will be in and we will see many whales, sea lions and rafts of birds.

Learned about a new website: www.alaskahumpbacks.org This website has pictures of the tail flukes of many of the humpback whales that reside in Southeast Alaska. These whales have been studied and photographed for years. I think there are pictures of over 1900 whales on this site. The site has been established to help us learn more about the whales and also as a way for people to publish photos of whales not listed before. I think the site said there is a local population of humpback whales that numbers about 5000. Check it out, I think you will like it.